PajamaMan...

Sunday, June 1

Women power!

Got SMSes this morning from a couple of friends. One a lady and one gentlemen. It's about a news article on the today's paper -- Just have to remember to buzz me when seeing news like this I suppose...

It's Sunday morning, and I'm finishing a web development work for a client (My "off days" are usually on weekdays). Once finished, and I can happily go to a Amir's wedding ceremony ("kenduri kahwin" - he had gone through the "nikah" solemn last Wednesday which I forgot to attend -- missed the correct date, but he ended up showing up at my house that very night introducing his bride from my Ayer Itam kampung), and perhaps do some shopping this afternoon before meeting a business partner preparing for tomorrow morning's deal with a local university -- we're supposed to commercialize a visual media enhancement software product, the long 6+ month of negotiations and planning (and acting for the press)!

The few shops selling newspapers are just two-minute away from my house, including a 7-11 (although it only carries The Star, not the New Straits Times), but I figured I can check the specific article out faster by checking out the paper's website. Cool, it's there! "Why waste women power?", the article asks.

KUALA LUMPUR: Picture this: your secretary is typing your correspondence and handling your calls and appointments -- but from the comfort of her home.

Is this possible? Yes, if management takes up a suggestion by Human Resources Minister Datuk Dr S. Subramaniam.

Dr Subramaniam, who took office on March 18, wants to increase women participation in the workforce and does not want family responsibility to curtail their involvement.

"Sixty per cent of our university students are women, so they must contribute to the country. Women, of course, do face a dilemma once they have a family. And many choose to stay at home because of their responsibilities," he said.

So Dr Subramaniam is calling on the private sector to take jobs, through outsourcing agencies, to women who choose to be homemakers .

"Another successful overseas concept is 'home office'. This means people take work home and work from there."

He hopes the private sector will lead the way.

"Industries and management have to change their mindset. They must, for instance, say, 'Yes, the secretary will not be in the office tomorrow but she will be doing the job from her home'."

Now, we need to work on reviving the Pajamanation initiative... But reading Andy's blog post, I wonder too, "What's Walter up to these days..." (He's now with OLPC, another good cause on getting cheap laptop for kids around the globe, btw... but his personal website and blog are off at the moment!)

Heck, if I can make a decent earning at home, full time (I only go to my office some 20 minutes away once or twice a week - I hate the peak hours traffic!), many more can too, perhaps...(working while at the same time not missing SUKMA (website is down!) live coverage on my LG LCD TV, catching up with MacBreak Weekly on iTunes and entertaining guests who arrived from Sepang last night - my sister with her daughter...)